I think I need a new clutch this winter. My stock 2000 clutch is slipping and has 7,000 miles on it. I am very mechanical and have a ton of time in the winter months. Do I need many special tools or training to install a Z06 or aftermarket clutch? Is it worth my time? I plan to purchase all of the shop manuals for my car.
Thanks
Loud Mouth :D

 

MattG (Exit 28 Mototsports) replaced his clutch *himself* in his garage. He detailed it here a while back, with photos and text. You might want to contact him, or maybe he'll see this and chime in.

 

From what I have heard from others (MattG in particular) this quite the chore, it includes removing the entire rear end of the car if I'm not mistaken. As long as you are comfortable basically taking the entire drivetrain apart on your car and have a lift or some other means of getting the car off the ground high enough you should be fine. I think MattG said the total time for the install was close to 15-20 hrs, but that may be wrong. I, myself, would NEVER attempt this on my car, but I'd play assistant to someone else doing it on their car. Just tell me where to stand! :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

Using the shop manual method, it IS alot of work! But, RPO_Z06 is going
to show us how to change it in 2.5 hours.. see: http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=316508

Not a clue yet how he does it, but I suspect maybe he just slides the motor
forward a little bit or something...

Gary

 

Loud Mouth,

From what I've read on the forum, the mechanical aspects are pretty straight forward. I think a tranny jack or a modified pad for your floor jack might be useful to rest the tranny/differential on in order to pull rearward so the drive line can be disengaged from the pressure plate.

I got the impression that getting the car jacked up high enough for clearance and properly secured on good jackstands so that you feel comfortable that you aren't subjecting yourself to possible injury is a big part of the job.

And be sure to get a manual and follow the proceedure so you don't lose the balance; when changing the flywheel there are balancing slugs that need to be transferred to the new flywheel. I think some have successfully surfaced the flywheel but I don't think the service manual recommends that.

Good luck.
Mark


[Modified by MDT, 3:13 PM 7/10/2002]

 

Nope, I never move the motor..
I've done another one since and it had long tubes and it still only took 3.5 hours with header removal.
Sorry guys, I didn't take a camera with me.. I'm sure someone else will need one soon enough though.
The main thing is not to remove everything but to move everything and that so called "quick connect" doesn't really have to be removed my way ether.
Anyone that wants help can email me for my phone number and I'll explain it in depth. :smash:

 

I changed my clutch and flywheel in the driveway. I drove the front of the car onto ramps while silmultaneously driving the rear wheels onto boards about three inches high. This allowed me to get a hydraulic floor jack under the rear of the car and raise it, while the front end was on the ramps. I then used jack stands at the outside frame rails, at the factory recommended locations. To protect the plastic body panel from the top of the jackstand, I cut a small piece of wood to go between the frame and the stand. Using this method, I was able to gain adequate height under the car for the change out.

I followed the factory service manual for the bulk of the operation. It took me two weekends, but I did more than just change out the clutch and flywheel. I also installed poly urethane bushings in the entire rear suspension, which took quite a while. I have no doubt that the job can be done in much less time, as I am very meticulous and clean everything to a factory spakle before putting it back onto the car. But if someone can do this job in less than 4 hours, my hat goes off to them. That would be truly impressive.

You asked about special tools. I can recommend three. First, I borrowed a professional's transmission jack. I took the drive line out intact- torque tube, transmission, and differential as a single unit. I'm not saying it would be impossible to do without a trans jack, but I do think it would be extremely difficult. The drive line assembly has considerable mass, and I believe it would be difficult to stab that assembly free-hand into the clutch disc and pilot bearing.

Second, I recommend using an actual input shaft to align the clutch disc. I initially used a plastic tool that came with my new clutch. When I went to stab the driveline, it would't go into the pilot bearing (in the back of the crankshaft). The drive line would go in fine, except for the last half inch. It wasn't going into the pilot bearing. After fighting the problem unsuccessfully for hours, I finally removed the pressure plate and started over. I measured the plastic alignment tool with a dial caliper vs an old input shaft I had salvaged from a destroyed transmission. I found the plastic alignment tool was about .010 inches smaller in diameter, which allowed a slight misalignment of the new clutch disc vs the center of the pilot bearing. Using the actual input shaft to insure proper alignment of the disc/pilot bearing, the assembly went back together nicely. I'm not saying that you wouldn't be able to use the plastic alignment tool and get things to fit. But if I had an actual input shaft available, use it.

Finally, get a couple of long (4 or 5 inch) metric thread bolts to match the size of the bolts that hold the torque tube to the bell housing. Cut off the bolt heads and cut a slot in the end so that you can use a screw driver to turn the bolt. You can then screw these bolts into the bell housing and use them to "guide" the drive line assembly into the bell housing. It works like a charm!

The factory manual says you need a special tool to separate the clutch hydraulic line quick-disconnect. You don't. I used a pair of needlenosed pliers, opened to rest on either side of the sleeve that is depressed to separate the coupling, and pressed down on the sleeve with good success.

There's nothing like turning the wrenches yourself. There's also no better way to learn about your car than to roll up your sleves and dive in. Good luck.

 

This job is very simple just a little time consuming the first time. The march 2001 corvette fever has a great tech article that covers everything down to torque specs. I have my drive line down every couple weeks during race season and it gets faster each time. I blew a torque tube last week went to convention and blew an output shaft this week.
Good luck, Dale